New Zealand Dominates Fiji 45-7 In The Test Match in San Diego
By Caroline Chepkorir
The New Zealand All Blacks and Fiji Flying Fijians made history as they clashed for the first time on American soil in a test match at Snapdragons Stadium in San Diego. The world ranks the New Zealand All Blacks at number three, and the Fiji Flying Fijians at number ten.
The New Zealand All Blacks defeated the Fiji Flying Fijians by 47-5. Despite the hard-fought match from Fiji’s side, New Zealand managed a 26-5 lead by the end of halftime and scored 21 more points in the second half. The Flying Fijians scored a try through Vilimoni Botitu, but they did not win their first match against the New Zealand All Blacks in their eighth meeting.
The New Zealand all blacks ran in seven through Winger Caleb Clarke, scrumhalf Cortez Ratima, center Billy Proctor, loose forward Ardie Savea, winger Sevu Reece, prop Ethan de Groot, and hooker George Bell.
In the center, Proctor made a brilliant test debut with several line breaks and partnered with Lienart-Brown in the midfield for a try, while Noah Hotham and Ratima offered a very similar effort in the pass balance, which maintained a high for the New Zealand all blacks.
When George Bell and Pasilio Tosi joined the game, they faced a competent Fijian pack to scrum against, but as the game progressed, both players demonstrated potential in open play. Bell scored a try of his own, while Tosi contributed nicely to Ethan de Groot's try; therefore, each player earned favorable scores.
Wallace Sititi has the tough task of always being behind Ardie Savea in the pecking order, but despite coming in late in the game, he made every touch count. Sam Darry also made an impressive case with some excellent breakdown work that resulted in a couple of penalties, but he and Sititi will need more game time against the Pumas to truly judge whether they're ready for test rugby.
“We talked about grinding them down. It took a bit of time to do that,” New Zealand All Blacks Captain Scoot Barret said in media reports. “We got the rewards at the end of that, but Fiji certainly showed up tonight in the physical area,” he added.
The New Zealand All Blacks will still have more to show ahead of New Zealand’s Rugby Championship opener against Argentina next month.
JUDY ROTICH